Captive Interest
by The New Vampire
Summary: Requested by NarutoFanL. Maru is an intern for the NPA, who joins the Kira taskforce. But how will she cope, with a dark past and two of the greatest detectives in the world falling for her? Rating for safety.  Willow
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hi, it's Willow! Before you ask, this is a story that NarutoFanL requested, so it's dedicated to him/her!

Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note, iPods, or Maru. Death Note belongs to Ohba & Obata. iPods belong to Apple, co. Maru belongs solely to NarutoFanL-I'm just borrowing her. Minor OCs may appear, they belong to me, k?

Now, on with the show!

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Chapter 1

"Hey, Maru-chan!" Maru giggled. "Hey, Matsu-kun!" The young man grinned back. The two had bonded together over the intern training.

Matsuda was in his later twenties, with a lanky frame and shaggy black hair. He was the kind of person that would sit near the back, had the wrong answers to most of the questions, and took a verbal beating with a nervous laugh. And those habits had followed him into the police internship.

Maru was a seventeen-ish girl. She was tall and willowy, with long black hair that she kept up in a ponytail. She often wore black, liking the color for it's similarity to night, darkness, sleep, and calm. Even her iPod was black, and stocked full of music she loved. For some reason, however, many though she was related to Misa Misa, the pop idol. Maru hated that. She had seen Misa Misa, and she wondered how people made that mistake. Misa Misa seemed like a normal pop idol, her head filled with nothing but photo shoots, filming, makeup, and hot air. Whereas Maru had actually studied overseas, not to brag or anything.

"What's up?" she asked, taking her seat next to the other. "Oh, the Vice-Director's pulling everyone together. Remember the showdown between L and Kira?" Did she? "My goodness, Matsu-kun, I was there!" He laughed. "Yeah, so—" he was cut off by none other than Chief Yagami. "Everyone, this case will require a willingness to give up your life. So, please do not think only of yourself—think of your family, and friends. I will be back at five to meet with the team. That is all." He turned and left without another word.

At first, there was silence. And then there were whispers. Whispers escalated to talking, and soon there were a stampede of people rushing to get out. Matsuda looked over at Maru. She lightly slapped him. "No, Matsu-kun. I'm not going."

"Bu-but what a-about—" She laughed. "Don't worry, I come from a Chinese mother. She'd practically force me to do this. Matsuda-kun," she said, turning to him with a smile, "this is the biggest case we will ever crack. Don't you think that we should stay to solve it?" So that was how, when the Chief got back, Maru and Matsuda, along with Ide, Mogi, Aizewa, Watari, and Usata were still sitting, Matsuda giving the director a greeting. At first, the Chief looked surprised that there were so little people, but he realized that this indeed was very many people.

"Chief, if you count Watari and L, that's nine people to fight Kira!" Maru couldn't help smiling at that. Matsu really could be cute if he wanted to, but…just not quite her type. Her thoughts drifted back…back to a boy who'd held her hands, pulled her close, black hair falling like night around her face, nothing but his eyes coming closer to her…she mentally hit herself. _No, can't be thinking about that now…_She opened her eyes again, only to close them. _Aizewa…stop being such an idiot. No one can trust L, the way you want to. We just have to walk, blindfolded, where he directs us…we need L on our side. Without him, we'd have no chance of catching Kira. _

"Watari…" L said, and Watari turned to computer around. There, L had typed in the directions to his hotel, and how to get there. "In pairs of two? But…that means…" Matsuda stammered. Maru finished for him. "That I'll be going alone."

"Wha—Maru-chan! You can't—" she held up a hand to stop him. "Matsu, I've made up my mind. Besides, I can take what life throws at me. Yagami-san," she turned to him. "I'll call you if something's the matter, k?" Chief Yagami nodded, with a worried look on his face. "Still…Maru-san, are you sure that you want to do this?" She smiled, the strange phenomenon that made her entire face light up in a beam of sweet innocence. Even though those around her knew of her shattered core. "Yes. I am."

The night was cold, she realized as she pulled her coat closer to herself. She missed the company of Matsu, or even the Chief. But there was no backing out now. It was the time to start. She walked leisurely to the hotel, and got in an elevator. It was empty, so she half-collapsed against the wall, her morning coffee completely used up. Thankfully, she still had a sweet in her pocket, for emergencies like this. She downed the entire Pix Stix, and felt the sugar rush back into her system. Not as good as coffee, but it would do for now. The elevator pinged, the doors opened, and she rejoined the group of her fellows. After a moment, the Chief raised his hand to knock on the door, and it opened. A dull voice came from behind the door.

"Come in. I've been waiting for you all."

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A/N: This moved along quite quickly, but I promise it'll slow down!

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks again to NarutoFanL for her review!

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Chapter 2

Maru was going to laugh. If it hadn't been for her quick instinct in biting her tongue, she would've made a fool of herself. But the looks on her fellow policemen's faces nearly pushed her over the edge. Well, what had they thought L would look like—mid-forties and carefully groomed? Maybe with some spectacles, too. And yet, here in front of her, was a man that couldn't be more than a couple years her senior, with messy black hair, baggy jeans, and clearly lacking in some sleep. And fashion sense. He had neither socks nor shoes, and his hands were stuck deep in his pockets. "I am L," was all that he said, in a low monotone voice. "I-I am Vice-Director Soricho Yagami," Chief Yagami said, holding up his police ID as identification. L's eyes rested on him for only a moment, then turned to the rest of the group. "I'm Aizewa."

"Matsuda."

"Mogi."

"Usata."

"…" L's eyes rested firmly on her, while her mind raced. _The conclusion that headquarters came to was that Kira needed a face and a name, that means…if L is indeed Kira…even though I don't believe that's the case…is he…testing the police?_

"…I'm Mara," she said with a smile, while subtly kicking Matsuda. He said nothing as his eyes never lost contact of hers, only raising his hand, three fingers curled in, thumb pointing to the ceiling, and index finger pointing at the group—what first grade boys would do as a makeshift gun. "Bang," he said, almost sounding bored. "Ah?"

"Hey, that's not funny!" Aizewa protested. Wrong. It was funny, just not from his point of view. "If I were Kira, Vice-Director Soricho Yagami, you'd be dead." There was a shocked silence as L continued. "As you know, Kira needs a face and a name to kill, so please do not give your names away so carelessly. Instead, let's value our lives, shall we?" He turned away and gestured to the table. "Please leave all communication devices on that table." Matsu sighed as he put down his cell phone. "I wish L would trust us…" he said wistfully as Aizewa grumbled, "Does he think that we'll record the conversation?" Maru didn't say anything, but almost as soon as she put her cell phone on the table, the screen flashed, "Incoming Call." Maru's face turned red, and L shuffled over. "Can you track this call?" he asked. She nodded, opened the phone and showed him the screen. It said, "Call from Yamachi Akira." L raised his hidden eyebrows. "A-Akira's a friend of mine…" He pressed the green button twice, then handed it to her. She saw that he'd activated loudspeaker. "A-Akira? Hello?"

* * *

L's mind was racing. _This…is this Kira? Akira is a Japanese unisex name—meaning, this could be a boy or girl. And he/she has Kira in her name, she could be…I can't grade the percentage until I get a grasp on how he/she thinks…_

* * *

"Hello? Oh, hi Maru!" A high, cheerful voice could be heard in from the phone. "Hey, Akira…" Maru was practically sweating. "Maru, what's wrong?"

"Uh, nothing. I'm fine."

"Uh-huh. Now tell me what's wrong or I'll hunt you down, promise."

"Um…Aki…this isn't the best time…"

"I know it's not. But I like putting you on the spot…"

"Aki! Oh, for heaven's sake, can you call later?"

"Um…no."

"Aki!"

"Really, Maru, what's wrong? You're not snippy like this…" The voice was concerned. "Maru…did your coffee run out?" Maru let a sigh of relief escape.

"Uh, yeah." There was a crackle of static as Akira sighed.

"And let me guess. The Pix Stix you grabbed this morning doesn't agree with you. That's fine, but I hope you like mocha!" Maru was about to answer when she registered what Akira had said.

"Mocha's o—wait, what?" There was a giggle at the end.

"Really, Maru, sometimes you're slow on the uptake. I'm tracking you right now."

"A-AKI!" Maru looked wildly at L, who held out his hand for the phone.

"Aki, one minute, k?"

"Sure, Maru!" Maru gave L the phone, wanting to sink into the ground. Of all the times for her humorous, impulsive friend to barge in…

"Hello?" L asked, holding the phone as if it contained a dangerously contaminative disease.

"…Who's speaking?"

"I am currently working with the NPA. May I ask who you are?"

"…that would be useless. You've heard the conversation, so you know my name."

"Hm. Why do you think that?" L stuck his thumb in his mouth and started chewing on the fingernail.

"Because when she's on speaker phone, Maru-chan doesn't put the phone to her ear, but she speaks normally. Her voice sounded far away. Also, I hear fabric moving, and she's never this short tempered, not even when she doesn't have any coffee or sleep. So she's being monitored. Therefore, the logical explanation is that she's nervous, either about meeting someone in the room, that our conversation was being listened to, or both. But either way, you know my name is Akira."

"Yes. Now, I would like to advise you not to try to track down Maru-san, or try to contact her anymore."

"…Put Maru on the line, please." L handed Maru back the phone, not deactivating the speaker phone.

"Maru, deactivate speaker phone, please." Maru started. It was so unlike Akira to be like this, ordering her with this flat voice…L shook his head.

"Akira, I'm sorry, but I can't." There was another sigh.

"Well, then, I guess that made me more suspect. Because I'm pretty sure that now the people who are listening think that I'm Kira." There was a surprised air all around, all except for L, who remained impassive.

"Wha—? Aki, don't be silly…"

"What for, Maru? It's natural for me to suspect this."

"Why do you think so?" Matsuda piped up, before everyone silenced him with a glare.

"Oh, hi Matsu-san. By the way, Maru, I've already tracked down your location. You're over at the Teito hotel, near the police station. My first reason is that I asked you to deactivate the speaker phone. This would make my probability of being Kira higher than most. Second, I called you soon after you entered this room. Third, part of my name is Kira. If you separate the first letter, then it spells "A Kira". Am I not correct?"

"A-Aki, that's still quite uncalled for. Isn't that—I mean, why do you think I'm on Kira's trail at all?"

"As I've said, Maru, and you know I don't mean anything by this, but you're quite slow on the uptake. First of all, why are you at a hotel? That is one thing. You are, after all, my roommate. Second, there's at least two others in that room…three if Aizewa-san is there, which he most likely will be, to keep Matsuda in check. And why would there need to be a gathering of three or four possible police officers in a hotel room near the police station?"

"…one minute, Aki."

"Of course, Maru." Maru covered the microphone with one hand and looked over at L, who was still nibbling on his thumbnail.

"Your friend, how old is she?" he asked almost lazily. "A-almost 14." L looked up to the ceiling. "14…she's quite young. What is your relationship with her?"

"I—she's like my little sister. We're also roommates."

"Please tell me more about her."

"Um, she has long black hair like me, and she keeps it back either in a ponytail or using a silver headband. Oftentimes, she wears a knitted beret—she makes them herself. She can't legally work, but she designs web pages and has written some books under various pen names, which pay for her part of the rent, and most of mine, too. She went to collage at a very young age and graduated with full honors. She's playful and still mostly a child, but she can act very well. She also likes candy and chocolate, and is very capable of many things. Um, she's also taken a few self-defense and martial arts classes, and she visits at the police station sometimes. She loves her laptop and also likes to draw. Is that enough?"

"…perhaps. Her percentage of being Kira is…25% at the moment. So…tell Akira-san that she should come, but let her know that she will not be allowed to move from this place without one of us accompanying her." Maru uncovered the phone.

"Aki, you should come, but…after you do, you can't move without supervision, alright?"

"That's fine, Onee-sama. I'll be over with your mocha—you shouldn't drink straight coffee at night—in about five minutes, as long as the metro isn't too long." There was a click before the dial tone took over. Maru put the phone down on the table, and there was a long pause before L broke the silence, walking into the adjoining room.

"Oh, yes, please call me Ryuuzaki here as a precaution. Please, sit."

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A/N: Heh, the plot thickens quickly. Next chapter, we finally meet Akira!

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Yeah, this is too short. But, deal with it, because I have writer's block. TT_TT

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Chapter 3

Maru's palms were sweating after the debriefing. _Damn…Aki, of all the times to do the stupidly right thing…_ Her cell beeped, with a text. Room #? She looked up at L. He nodded, and she sent a text with the room number. Soon afterwards, there was a quiet knock on the door. Maru got up to open it, and her adopted little sister was standing there with nothing other her messenger bag. Her hood was up. "Aki, do you have any idea how much trouble I'm probably in now?" Maru sighed. Her little sister shook her head. "Nope, but I do know that you're having an adventure, and I'm not going to be left out, underage or not." She smiled. "Anyway, I brought your mocha, too." She handed a hot black thermos to the older one before entering the hotel suite. "Hi, Aizewa-san, Matsuda-san, and Chief-sama," she said quietly. L looked her over before saying, "Please take off your hood." She looked at him. "Oh, so you're the one who's working with the NPA…ok, then." She took off her hood and gave them a huge, sweet smile that lit her face very much like Maru's did. "Hi, I'm Akira!"

Maru sighed in relief, leaning back in the chair she'd taken. It seemed that Aki was only going to be put under surveillance, and—wait, even in the…? She facepalmed. "Not to worry, Maru-san, only you will be watching the bathroom cameras." B-bathroom…? "Ryuuzaki, I swear…" L looked up. "Yes, Maru-san?" She gave him a very dark look. "I swear," she repeated, "if you don't keep Matsuda from the cameras, I-I will find a way to…burn your sugar supply!" L remained impassive, albeit a bit paler than before. "Of course, Maru-san." I sighed, clutching my coffee. "I need some air," I said to no one in particular. "I'll be back in half an hour."

I was out of the hotel and on the sidewalk in a couple of minutes. I walked aimlessly, heading no where in particular, really. I just…it was so overwhelming, being part of this investigation and seeing L. And now, with my genius little sister caught up in the entire thing. I sighed, leaning against the brick wall of the alley I'd snuck into. "My life is so messed up now…" I saw a shadow loom over me. "H-hey, who's there?" There were a bunch of slightly drunk, ugly laughs as a towel was slapped over my face, and I blacked out.

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**TBC**


	4. AUTHORS NOTE

**Hey, everyone. :) How are you guys?**

**Anyway, I have to tell you all something. I am not satisfied with this story. In my humble opinion, it sucks.**

**So, I'm taking some time off to revamp the entire thing. This'll still be up, I guess, but the new version will come up. Sorry for never being on, but school and everything...just goes crazy. :) So, no worries, NarutoFanL, I will put up the new story soon.**

**As for my other Death Note stories...with the exception of Saviours, another piece with NarutoFanL, let's just say I've moved on to other manga ^^'. If you guys want, I'll try. But I swear I will finish this story, by hook or by freaking crook, I WILL. Pinky promise.**

**Good luck with life, everyone.**

**See yah.**

**Don't let the bedbugs bite. But I'll take your cake anyway. ;)**

**-Will**


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